“Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6:10 ESV

As our world continues to grow and the sense of community is lost to the busyness of every day, we may forget to pray for others. There are times we don’t even know that our friends or family need our prayers.  There are a number of reasons for that. We might be afraid to open up our lives to others.  We may feel ashamed or embarrassed by the things that we’re concerned about.  We may not want people to know we’re suffering with an illness or loss, because we think it’s a sign of weakness.  We may think we don’t need the prayers of others, because our relationship with God is a private thing between us and God.  We may want to handle things ourselves.

When Jesus taught His followers how to pray in His Sermon on the Mount, He made it clear what our prayers should include.  Our words should be from the heart – not just words that outwardly make a show of ourselves. Prayers should be done in private – with the doors closed – in a closet, no less. So, what about the image I’ve chosen for today’s post? It shows a number of people praying together – for each other. Have we forgotten how to do that? Each one of us is facing some kind of problem, illness, loss, anxiety, depression, fear, etc. When we pray together, we’re amplifying our voices to the One True God. Not that He doesn’t hear the most silent of our prayers. In doing this, we are joining together our belief in God’s providence and provision. Not only are we praying for each other, but also for ourselves.

In the words of His very own prayer, He tells us to honor and praise God, the Father – to forgive others – ask for our own forgiveness – have our daily needs provided – to be kept safe from temptation. He wants those words to spill onto all those around us.  We really need to get back to a community of people who care about each other.  This is part of the reason people go to church – to be encouraged by the Word, to praise God, to give thanks to Him and to be in fellowship with other Christians.

Don’t be afraid to share your prayer requests with others.  God loves it when we pray together with sincere hearts.  Jesus also said that where two or three are gathered in His name, He will be there with them.

THANK YOU JESUS, FOR ANOTHER DAY TO OPEN OUR HEARTS IN CORPORATE PRAYER. YOU ARE THE SOURCE OF ALL UNDERSTANDING, JUSTICE AND HOPE FOR THE FUTURE.